Which to use
“prüfe” and “prüfte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #23,670
- “prüfe” frequency rank
- #33,241
- “prüfte” frequency rank
- 56911
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | prüfe | prüfte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs prüfen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs prüfen |
Where the eye mixes prüfe and prüfte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. prüfe runs 5 letters (CCVCV) against prüfte's 6 (CCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between prüfe and prüfte
A purely visual mix-up. prüfe ([ˈpʁyːfə]) and prüfte ([ˈpʁyːftə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56911, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
prüfe is recorded at frequency rank #23,670, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈpʁyːfə]. prüfte is at rank #33,241, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈpʁyːftə].
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 56911, this pair ranks #921,928 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of prüfe vs prüfte
Shared letters: efprü. Private to "prüfe": -. Private to "prüfte": t.
"prüfe" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "prüfte" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "prüfe" and "prüfte" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "prüfe" vs "prüfte" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "prüfe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "prüfte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #921,928 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "prüfe" and "prüfte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "prüf vs prüfte". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #921,928 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.